Gearing for washing-machines.



W. H. voss.

GEARING FOR WASHING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED DBOilB, 1906. 91 8 ,934. Patented Apr. 20, 1909.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

W. H. 'VOSS. GEARING FOR WASHING MAGHINES'.

APPLICATION FILED 11110.13, 1906.

918,934, Patented Apr- 20, 1909.

Egg- 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WILLIAM H. VOSS, O

DAVENPORT, IOWA.

(HEARING FOR WASHING MAGHINES.

No. erases.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. December 13, 1906.

Patented April 20, 1909. Serial No. 347,665.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. Voss, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Davenport, in the county of Scott and State of Iowa, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Gearing .for Washing- Machines, of which the following is a clear, full, and exact description.

My invention relates more articularl to mechanical movements for lever was ing machines and its object is to regulatethe throw of the lever and utilize the momentum of a fly-wheel in connection therewith to assist in the operation of the machine. v

Another object is to locate and connect the fly-wheel in such manner that it wilh together with its connected gears, be wholly within the bounds of the peripl'iery of the bottom of the tub, and when thus constructed the entire mechanism'will be capableoi being assembled in a knock-down shape.

This I accomplish by the means hereinafterfully described and as particularly point-ed out in the claims.

In the drawings: Figure '1 is. a vertical transverse section through a washing ma- .chine, showing my improvements applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a detail view of the top gear or reversing mechanism drawn to a larger scale. Fig. 3 is a detail View .on an en- 'larged scale of the lower gearing and connected fly-wheel. Figs. 4 and 5 are fraginental details showing certain portions of the device to behereinafter more specifically described. Fig.6is' an enlarged detail'-section taken on line 6'6, Fig. 1. g

Referring to the drawings-A represents a suitable tub such as used in washing inachines that is preferably provided with a hinged cover B and is supported at a proper elevation above the floor by a suitable number of equi--distant legs a, a, which latter are braced by suitable cross pieccs a, a. J ournaled in bearings .c in the center of the cover is a rotary rec-i rocal stirrer-shaft (I that is provided at its dwer end with a stirrer-head or dasher O of any well-known construction. The portion of this stirrer-shaft 0 extending above itsbearings is squared and passes through a rectangular o ening in abevele'd pinion D with which saishaft is adapted to revolve but at thesanie time has a longitudinel movement independent of said pinion. Above the pinion D the stirrer-shaft extends through a suitable sleeve E placed be f for a short shaft G that carries upon its inner end a combination bevel and spur gear, the diameter of the bevel-gear H of which behig greater than that of the spur-geaizL, and engages the pinion D. The spur-gear I is placed between the bevel-gear H and the bearing f and engages a longitudinally elongated reciprocal rack J. This rack J is of such len th that its opposite end extends beyond the circumference of the top of" the tub and is pivotally connected to a vertical lever as will hereinafter more fully appear.- The end of the side of this rack J is provided with a longitudinal rib j, and the rack is held in engagement with the s}.)u1*-gear by the block 'K the top of which is provided with agroove in which said rib moves and thus efl'ectually prevents the accidental disengagement of the rack and spur-gear while permitting a slight rocking motion. of the rack as it moves back and forth on said block. By providing the underside of the outer end of the rack with an inverted open bearing 7; and causing this open bearing to catch over and engage a pin it extendingtransversely through a lever l1 and. a slot therein through which the end of the rack extends, substantially as shown, said. rack can be easily removed from said lever.

The operating lever L is fulcruinedkbetween the arms of a bracket Z located and secured to the side'of the tub The upper or longer branch of this lever extends above the point where the rack J is connected thereto, and terminates in a socket L in which the shank of a handle L maybe removably or fixedly secured, according as desired. -lhe lower branch of said lever extends a suitable distance belowits bearing bracket to a point below the, plane of the bottom of the tub, and said portion. is preferably llO bent at an angle to the upper member, substantially as shown in Fig. 1. of the drawings. The free'end of this lower branch is provided with a downwardly projecting extension m upon which is mounted a swivel '0int M comprising a sleeve journaled on the extension m and prevented from falling oh the same by a cotter-pin m, which sleeve is provided with HIS/111181 and is journaled in suitable hearings in a boss constituting part of one of the arms of a horizontally disposed gear 0, by means of which the rocking movement of the lever L is converted into a rotary motion. Gear 0 is journaled in bearings in a substantially T-shaped supporting-plate P, preferably at the junction of its members. The ends of the segmentally shaped arms of this supporting-plate are secured to the cross-pieces a connecting the legs of the tub, and the end of the straight members extends past the point of intersection of said cross-pieces and is provided with a vertical bearing p that extends centrally down through the intersecting point of the cross-pieces and'has journaled therein avertical spindle g. The end of this spindle above said hearing has a pinion Q mounted thereon, and the end thereof below said bearing has a horizontally disposed fiy-wheel R. The pinion Q is engaged and driven by gear 0 and, as its diameter is considerably less than that of said gear, it revolves much faster than the same and the revolution imparted thereby to the fiy-wheel 'R is such that the momentum of the latter, when once under way, materially assists in actuating the lever L and thereby reduces to a minimum the manual effort eX- erted on said lever to operate the stirrershaft, and head in the tub through the medium of the mechanism hereinbef'ore de scribed.

By the construction hereinbefore described the machine and its parts can be completely knocked down for thepurpose of shipment. By removing the pins from'the brackets Z, the swivel joint M and the wrist-pin o, the opcrating lever L, the pitman N and the rack J can be removed from the outside of the tub and placed within the same in a compact By locating the fly-wheel and. its operating gears below the bottom of the tub and in a horizontal plane therewith, the same will be entirely out of the way'of the operator and not interfere with any movements adj aoent to the tub.

What 1 claim as new is l.- In mechanism for driving a washing machine, the combination with a rotary reciprocal shaft, a horizontally dis osed gear mounted on said shaft, a vertica 37 disposed gear engaging said horizontal gear, arecipro cal rack engaging said vertical gear, and a reciprocal. lever removably connected. to one end or" said rack, of a horizontally disposed fiy'wheel journaied below said shaft, and a pitman connected at its outer end by a universal joint to the lower end of said lever and at its inner end indirectly operating said flywheel.

2. In. mechanism for driving a washing machine, the combination with a rotary reciprocal shaft, and a reciprocal. lever operatively connected to said shaft, of a horizontally disposed. fly-wheel, a shaft therefor journaled below and in alinement with the axis of said rotary reciprocal shaft, a pinion on the end of said shaft opposite said flywheel, a gear meshing with said pinion, and a pitman one end of which is connected to said reciprocal lever and the other end is secured to said gear.

3. In mechanism for driving a washing machine, the combination with a rotary reciprocal shaft, a gear mounted on said shaft, a reciprocal rack engaging said gear, and a reciprocal lever connected to one end of said rack, of a horizontally disposed fly-wheel, a shaft therefor journaled below and in alinement with the axis of said rotary reciprocal shaft, horizontally. disposed speed-increasing gears operating said fly-whee and a pitman connecting one of said. gears to the lower end of saidreciprocal lever.

4. In mechanism for driving a washing machine, the combination, with a shaft, of a pivoted operating'lever, driving devices for oscillating the said shaft from one end portion of the said lever, a ily-wheel mounted to revolve in a horizontal plane below the said shaft, a toothed pinion secured to the said fly-wheel, a toothed wheel also mounted to revolve in a horizontal plane and provided with a crank-pin and gearing into the said pinion, and a connecting-rod provided with universal joints and arranged between said crank-pin and the other end portion of the said lever.

5. In mechanism for driving a washing machine, the combination with a shaft, and a toothed pinion for oscillating the said shaft, of a pivoted operating lever working in a substantially vertical plane, a toothed rack operatively connected with the upper end portion of the said lever and gearing into the said pinion, a fly-wheel mounted to revolve in a horizontal plane below the-said pinion and rack, a toothed pinion secured to the said fiy'wheel, a toothed wheel also mounted to revolve'in a horizontal plane and provided with a cranlepin and gearing into the last said pinion, and a connecting-rod provided with universal joints and arranged between the said. crank-pin and the lower end. portion of the said lever.

6. In mechanism for driving a washing machine the combination with suitable sup porting means, legs below the same, crossbraces, rotary reciprocal shaft journaled in the top of said supporting means, and a reciprocal lever fulornmed to the side of said supporting means and operatively connected to said shaft, of a horizontallydisposed flywheel journaled belowv and independent of said su porting means, and reciprocal means throug the medium of which motion is transmitted from the lower end of said reciprocal'lever to said fly-wheel. -.7. In mechanism for driving a washing machine the combination with suitable supporting means, legs below the same, crossraces connecting said legs, a bearing-plate mounted at the intersectionof said braces, a rotary reciprocal shaft journaled in the top of saidsupporting means, and a reciprocal lever fulcrumed to the side of said supporting ciprocal lever fulcrumed to the side of said supporting means and operatively connected to said shaft, of a horizontally disposedflywheel journaled in said bearing-plate below and independent of'said supporting means and reciprocal means through the medium 0 which motion istransmitted from the lower end of said reciprocal lever to said-:fly-Wheel. 9. In mechanism for driving a washing machine the combination with suitable supporting means, legs below the same, cross- 40 races connecting said legs, aT-shaped beara ing-plate having the ends of its segmental arms secured to said cross-braces and its straight arm connected to the intersection of said braces, a rotary reciprocal shaft journaled in the top of said supporting means, and a reciprocal lever fulcrumed to the side .of said supporting means and operatively connected tosaid shaft, of a horizontally disposed fiy-wheel journaled in said bearingplate below and independent of the supportlng means, and reciprocal means through the medium of which motion is transmitted from thelower end of said reciprocal lever to said fly-wheel.

/ v I Y 10. In mechanlsm for driving a washlng machine the combination with suitable supporting means, legs below the same, crossraces connecting said legs, aT -shaped bear w ing-plate the ends of the segmental arms of which are secured to said cross-braces and its straight arm provided with a vertical hearing at its end that extends through and v is secured tosaid braces at their point of in-. tersection, a rotary reciprocal lever fulcrumed to the side of said sup orting means operatively connectedto said s aft, of a horizontally disposed fly wheel the spindle of which'is jo'urnaled in said vertica bearing below and independent of the supporting.

'means,.and reciprocal means through the medium of which motion is transmitted from the lower end of said reciprocal lever to said II'It estimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal this 8th day ofDecember,

. WILLIAM H. VOSS.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR CLIFFORD, WILLIAM E. PULs.

I [L. 'sll 

